This is the Life
by dreamchaser31
Summary: Continuation of More Perfect then Before. Follows Joe,Stephanie,and Haven, through the day by day life in the burg. Rated T for later chapters. Ranger friendly. Please Review! Taking stories from my family life.Sorry if it's too dramatic.
1. Chapter 1

Okay I know that this first chapter is kind of short, but bear with me. I was brainstorming for the next chapter of Just Call Me Daddy, when I had the sudden urge to write another story with Haven in it. So I decided that I'm going to expand on the Joe/Steph/Haven story as well. I hope you all like it, and please review, and let me know what you think, feedback is important. And if you have any input or ideas, that might get little Haven into some mischief they are certainly welcome, right now I'm taking experiences from my niece. Enjoy!!

The little girl beside me was as cute as ever in her pigtails, and light pink velvet running suit set, courtesy of her Papa of course. She had her teddy bear in one hand and her tippy cup full of milk in the other as we walked into the Trenton PD this afternoon to see her daddy on his break. Joe wasn't expecting us but I had some errands to run so we decided to surprise him on our way home.

Once we were inside she was the center of attention. All the officer's knew who she was and she knew who they were.

"Hey," one of them exclaimed, "it's Little Morelli."

She just looked at him a flashed him her famous grin full of that "Morelli Charm," and continued to walk with me to the elevators. Once inside she made sure she got to push the button to the third floor where her Daddy's office was located, and then she reached her arms up to me for me to pick her up. I don't even know why I did because I knew that once we got to Joe's office she would be on the ground again, but she was my baby, and a little spoiling never did anyone any harm.

"Daddy," she yelled when she saw him sitting at his desk staring at the computer monitor in front of him.

He grinned and turned off the monitor just in time for her to bounce in his lap. "Hey Princess," he said as he gave her a hug and kiss, "what are you doing here?" Then looking up at me he smiled, the exact same smile that Haven gave one of the officers when we first got here.

"Well," I began and took a seat on the other side of his desk, "We had a few errands to run, and we decided to stop here when we were finished. Haven wanted to see her daddy, and I wanted to see what we were doing tonight."

He smiled and sat Haven down on the floor and she walked around to the front of his desk. Joe knew that Haven loved coming to see him at work, so we came a lot. But he also knew that she didn't have a long attention span, so he kept a little box full of toys for her to play with when she came in the corner. She stood on tip toe to set her teddy bear and tippy cup on his desk and walked to the corner and began playing.

We watched her play for a little while, so happy, and excited, and innocent, and at only three years old she was as smart as a whip. Her hair was still as dark and as curly as it was the day she was born, but it was longer now, down to her shoulders and she hated it cut. Just like her daddy. So we had to just trim it this morning and every time she would bob her head up and down her pig tails would just bounce up and down. It was the cutest thing in the world. Life didn't get any better then this.

I turned my attention back to Joe who was watching me intently, with his dreamy brown eyes, and sexy grin. "What," I asked, curious to what he was thinking.

He shrugged his shoulders and looked back to Haven who was pushing a truck around in a circle and making "vroom" noises. "I was just thinking how much things have changed over the last four years," he looked at me and then he stood up and made his way around the desk and scooped me out of the chair and into my arms. "My life is so good I can't even believe it. I have a beautiful fiancé, and a beautiful daughter, a nice house, a nice job, and even a dog. Fifteen years ago I wouldn't even picture me with one of those things." He bent down and gave me a kiss full a passion, that told me that everything he just said he though true.

"I know," I whispered as I pulled away from him, "me either." I leaned forward and kissed him again.

The "vrooming" noises had stopped so I looked toward our daughter who had gotten out a doll and a little brush and was coming her hair.

"So what do you want to do tonight," I repeated my earlier question. "Dinner at my parents, or take-out from Pino's?"

"Let's go to your parents," he said thoughtfully, "you know if your father goes one day without seeing her, he'll be knocking down our front door at midnight. And I really don't feel like filling out any domestic disturbance papers right now."


	2. Chapter 2

"Okay Haven," I said to my daughter as we walked through the door to my parents house that evening, "go wake up Papa," and with that the three year old skipped up the stairs and headed to her grandparent's room, while Joe and I walked into the kitchen to find my mother in the kitchen, half into a bottle of scotch.

I nudged Joe and whispered, "Looks like grandma might be up to something," and rolled my eyes.

"Cupcake," he whispered back and placed a light kiss on my lips, "when is your grandma not up to something?"

I laughed and turned away from him to face my mom. I was about to ask her what was going on when we heard a loud scream coming from the room upstairs. "Ow!" The scream didn't belong to Haven.

It was my dad.

"Son of a-", he began, "Haven I swear you are just like your mother!" With that said all we were heard were a bunch of giggles from the little girl, and to sets of feet running down the stairs.

The three of us in the kitchen turned toward the opening where the three years old and the worn out grandfather appeared. Growling Frank crept up behind Haven and picked her up and started tickling her stomach. Squealing, and flailing her little girl arms to get away, she just wasn't tough enough.

Smiling I looked at Joe then looked back to the action. They were always like this. "What she do this time dad," I asked as he sat the exhausted girl down on the floor. We watched her skip into the living room and heard the TV come on.

"The little brat pulled my arm hair," he replied with a laugh in his town, "and not just one, a fist fall," he finished and pointed to the red are on his arm. Nodding at Joe and my mother he walked into the living room to join Haven.

My father loved that little girl, and ever since she was born she had him wrapped around her little finger, for reasons I still don't understand. But that's okay, at least he was more social now.

Joe grabbed my hand and led me into the living room so my mom could finish cooking. Once in there we saw Haven sitting on my dads lap. The two were fighting over the remote control.

Joe cleared his throat, "Haven, why did you pull papa's arm hair sweetie," he consoled her, "that's not very nice."

The wrestling stopped for a minute and we waited for her response. "Well," she began, and we could tell she was thinking up something clever, "momma told me to woke him up," she shrugged her little shoulders and quickly grabbed the remote out of her papa's hand and climbed off the chair to escape. "He won't listen to me at first, but I pulled his hair and he listened real good."

Smart girl.

Joe and I sat on the sofa closest to the wall and watched as our daughter flipped the channel to Disney.

My father cleared his throat, and looked at us. "You guys have any wedding plans made yet," he asked with his eyebrows raised and his eyes looked hopeful. My father, I could tell, had wanted me and Joe together for a long time, so now naturally, he couldn't wait till our wedding day. Joe and him were getting to be best friends, which to me is kind of cool, but it's also kind of scary at the same time, and on Joe it's completely sexy to see him so close to my dad.

Joe looked at me and raised his eye brows, "I think we decided on May 6, right Steph?"

I nodded my head and looked toward my dad. "Ya, May 6," it was March already, and we really didn't want a long engagement. That gave us two more months to plan. "We've met with the wedding planner, and invitations go out next week." I looked at Joe and then back at my dad and suddenly I got nervous. "But dad," I paused because I really didn't know how to tell him this next part. "Joe and I have put a lot of thought into this over the last two months and we decided we wanted a non-denominational wedding," I said in one breath, "we're having it at the park across from the church," I finished and held my breath waiting for the wrath to hit.

Glass shattered in the kitchen, and I guess my mother heard the news. "Oh good Lord," she yelled, "why me?" She ran into the kitchen. "What will the neighbors think? What will my friends think," she paused, put her hands on her hips and looked at Joe. "What does your mother think?" She went over and stood by my dad, "Frank, talk some sense into your daughter, would you? You cannot not have your wedding at the church. It's a sin. I'll call Father. He'll do the service for you. May 6, did you say, I'll see if the church is available. For the love of God Frank, say something!"

My father looked at my mom and rolled his eyes. "You guys name the time and place and I'll be there with bells on." With that said my mother huffed and stomped back into the kitchen. We heard Valerie and the girls come through the door. Lisa was the first to notice Haven, so she squealed and ran to her.

All of the cousins loved her. She was so nice and gentle and good natured about everything. But she did get along with Lisa the best on my side. But on Joe's side, it was every single one of them, especially the now six year old Lelani. Joe and I think Haven got a lot of her smart remarks from her.

Valerie sat on the other side of me, and rolled her eyes. She was pregnant again, and she was moody all the time now.

"Bad day," I asked her and smiled at Haven and Lisa who were holding hands and dancing to a song that was playing on TV.

Valerie rolled her eyes and nodded, "The worst," she sighed, "after this baby is born, Albert is getting fixed."

Joe grimaced, and I laughed. When Haven was born we didn't set any limits as to when we would have our second child together. We just decided to use birth control like we did last time and if it happened well so be it. I myself was surprised that it hasn't happened yet, but I was also relived because Haven had her mommy and daddy all to herself during her most important years, while she was learning everything. And the older she got before another one came along the better she'd be with a new baby.

A knock sounded at the door, and in walked Ranger. He was getting more comfortable around my family, and I was getting more used to having him around all the time. If my dad and Joe were close, Ranger and Joe were like brothers. Haven heard the door open, and squealed when she saw who it was.

"Uncle Ranger!" She ran and threw herself at him. He laughed and picked her up and threw her in the air. He really was getting better with kids, and from what Joe has told me, he was also getting closer to his daughter Julie. She was coming down after school was over and spending the summer with him, which meant Haven had another buddy to play with at the pool this summer.

'Good for you, Ranger,' I thought and watched him sit my daughter on the ground, and walk over to the couch.

We all turned our attention to the TV, and sat in silence as the sounds of Hannah Montana filled the air. These were the moments where I collected my thoughts and pondered my life. And I reflected what Joe had said to me earlier.

This is definitely the life.


	3. Chapter 3

When Haven was settled in for the night, I walked quietly down the stairs and into the kitchen where Joe was making himself a peanut butter sandwich.

He looked up at me and smiled, "You want one," he asked and gave me a cheeky grin, the same one Haven had just given me an hour ago when she tried to convince me it wasn't her bedtime.

I laughed and shook my head no as I walked up behind him, wrapped my arms around his waist, and rested my head on his upper back, and sighed.

"Long day huh," he asked me as he turned around in my arms to face me. He sat the sandwich on the plate and wrapped his arms around me.

"Ya," my reply was muffled because my face was in his chest. I looked up at him and smiled. "Poor Valerie, she has the worst luck when it comes to pregnancies. She looked miserable."

He chuckled as he took another bite of his sandwich, and sat it down. "Yep," he responded lightly, "and I'm sure having Albert as the father isn't that great either. From what I here, Angie does more to help around then he does. Poor girl. She doesn't get much attention in that house hold does she?"

I shook my head and pulled away from him to make my way into the living room as he followed. Sitting down on the couch I responded. "No, she never has. She was still really little when Mary Alice was born. And with Albert, Lisa, and this new baby, she's had to grow up really fast. She told me the other day that she couldn't wait till she got to college."

I sighed and shook my head. If I had to pick a favorite out of all my nieces I would have to pick Angie. And I hated the thought of her having to grow up so fast. She was only twelve and she already had a full-time babysitting job. This was the time of her life where she should be going skating with friends on Friday nights, but instead she was stuck at home helping with the two younger kids. Last Friday was a prime example. Joe and I had invited her to go with us to see Disney on Ice in Newark, and she'd been ecstatic. Haven had picked her especially to go because that was her biggest older cousin, and she had spent the night at our house two nights before. But when we got to their home to pick her up Valerie said she couldn't go because she had to help with Lisa, because she was too sick.

I smiled at the next memory, Joe went all Italian mode on Valerie, and next thing I know Angie is in the back seat telling jokes to Haven. I looked at Joe who was now sitting beside being awfully quiet. I supposed that he was thinking about last Friday as well. "I wish there was something I could do to make Valerie see. She's just a little girl, Joe. She should be having fun all the time. I think that's why she loves coming over here so much, because she gets to be a kid, and have fun."

He nodded and put his arms around me. "Ya I've noticed that too." And once again silence surround us. The television wasn't even on which was definitely a first for us.

"I have to tell you this," I started and turned around so I was facing Joe full on. "Before I was pregnant with Haven, is when I really started to notice the way they treat her. I didn't like it. I talked to my parents about it and they noticed it too but they were too scared to say anything. I was going to talk to you about this but then I found out I was pregnant and things got a little too crazy and I didn't think we'd be able to do it."

I paused, and looked at him. "Able to do what," he asked and raised his eyebrows.

"Well, when I was talking to my parents, like I said before, the main thing they wanted to do was to get Angie out of that house. They knew that Albert and Valerie didn't treat her well, and they didn't like seeing it but they didn't want to step on Valerie's toes. I on the other hand didn't give a damn, and said I would take her. I waited for a week to think about it, but the day I found out I was pregnant was the day I was going to ask you if it was all right. I mean we were living together, so you'd have to have a say in the decision too."

He nodded, and part of his face was shocked.

"It's a big decision Joe," I started again, "but Angie's always been special to me. She's a good kid, and she doesn't deserve this. And now that I'm a mom," I paused to catch my breath, "no matter how desperate I am in need of help, I would never, never put Haven though that, she doesn't deserve it, and neither does Angie."

Joe nodded again and took in a deep breath. He hunched forward and clasped his hands together. "So what your saying," he began, "you are saying that you want Angie to come live with us?"

I nodded and swallowed hard. From his expression I couldn't tell what he was thinking. "Think about it Joe," I began my last plea. I went and knelt down on the floor in front of him, and grabbed his hands. Caressing his face I continued. "Can you imagine, being just a little boy, and living like that? Can you imagine putting your own daughter though that? Angie barely has time to do her homework at nights because she's too busy doing things for Albert and Valerie to work on it. She has to clean the house, watch the kids when they go out, and when this new baby is born the work load is going to get worse. I love my sister, but right now she's not being a very good mom. To the others she is, but to Angie she's not. Adding a baby to the mix is not one of her best ideas in a long time. And you saw first hand last Friday the type of treatment she gets. Everybody else's needs come first. Joe, she just needs a break, she needs to be a kid."

"Everything you're saying makes sense, Cupcake it does but," he took my hands in his, "don't get me wrong, I am ready and willing to take Angie out of that house in a heartbeat but aren't you worried about what your sister will think, about what she will do. Albert is a lawyer honey. And what about us, we're getting married in a couple of months what then?"

I nodded, "Joe, Albert is an alcoholic, and I've never liked him. I would have no problem digging up dirt on him to get my way." I replied shocked at the darkness of my words but continued. "Valerie's needs are not important to me right now what's important to me are the needs of my twelve year old niece. I don't care how we do it, it just needs to be done. We'll bring in child services what ever it takes. As for us getting married, I'm not concerned. We have a beautiful daughter upstairs that's well taken care of, and I have no doubt we'll be able to afford a teenager. And I'm sure my parents will help in anyway they can, ok?"

He nodded and leaned down to give me soft kiss on the lips. "Whatever you want to do Cupcake," he stood up and grabbed my hand. "We'll start the process tomorrow, I'll get a friend from services to look into what we can do. But tonight, I'm really tired, and all I want to do is sleep with the woman I love."

And with that he led me upstairs and turned out the lights.


End file.
